Put your favourite radio station or playlist in Control Centre on your iPhone, iPad and Mac. I am a listener, indeed a devotee, to the BBC World Service. I enjoy the variety of programming and the depth and dimension of news coverage is second to none. The service is my audio wallpaper and I tune into the news on the hour frequently. Thus, easy access to it is a thing for me. Siri however isn’t great responding to “Hey Siri, play BBC World Service”. More often than not, I end with music, most notably, ABC’s 80’s hit “Look of Love”. A few years ago I created a shortcut to play the station from an icon on my iPhone and iPhone home screens. I realised recently I could go a step further and put this shortcut in Control Centre. Indeed, you can put any shortcut in Control Centre. The first step is to create a shortcut for the station or playlist in the Shortcuts app, which in the latest OS is easier than ever. The second step is to then add a shortcut to Control Centre and then choose the shortcut you want. It’s that easy. 2 November 2026 https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/11/02/put-your-favourite-radio-station-or-playlist-in-control-centre-on-your-iphone-ipad-and-mac/ #controlcentre #bbcworld #worldservice #iphone #playlist #station #heysiri #indeed #abc #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

Apple Amateur Radio Bulletin – second edition October 2026 Web page – Posts – Facebook – X – BlueSky – Instagram – Reddit – Linktree Substack – RSS – PDF – Software list – YouTube Playlist – Email Welcome to the second edition of the Apple Amateur Radio Bulletin for October 2026. It’s been great to see many developers update their amateur radio apps for the new and super impressive iPhone Duo. I also think the new iPad Mini has great potential for portable operations. I have ordered one of the new Apple Home View table-top units and look forward to getting Ham Toolbox, QRV and World Clock Widgets on it. iPad 11 inch screen shot from D-Star on QSO one (see below) General applications Demod SDR receiver (iPad, iPhone) $ Demod is another SDR receiver for online KiwiSDR, OpenWebRX, SpyServer and RTL_TCP. HackRF Transfer GUI (Mac) Free Peter Marks, VK3TPM writes: “hackrf_transfer is a command line tool for getting a HackRF to capture and replay IQ files. I often use this for testing software such as FreeDV RADE and digital modes”. Ham Clock Launcher (Mac) Free From Hubert Hickman: “I have released the 4.33 version of the HamClock Launcher for the Mac — head on over to link for the latest version. Release notes are here. My thanks to the core devs who keep the original HamClock running and growing!” HamSat (iPhone, iPad, Watch) $ *** Developer Vasco Barreiros advises: “HamSat 2.1.9 is out, and it’s ready for iPhone Duo. HamSat makes the most of both screens. HamSat 2.1.9 runs on iPhone and iPad too, and the Apple Watch app still guides your antenna from the wrist. HamSat is free on the App Store. Desk mode, the live tracker, the live sky map and the Apple Watch app are part of HamSat Pro, a one-time purchase with no subscription”. Hermes Neo (Mac) Free Peter Marks, VK3TPM, writes: “I’ve had a Hermes Lite 2 on the bench for some time but couldn’t find SDR software that I liked. This is very early software so it’s not ready for prime time but is working for me on the bench here. You’ll note that FreeDV RADE is a first class mode in this application”. Icom Control (Mac) Free *** Peter Marks, VK3TPM, reports: “Icom-Control – a new macOS app to control some Icom radios over a network. I’ve been working on macOS 27 software to connect to some Icom radios. So far only tested on IC-705, IC-7760 and IC-7300 Mk2 (Thanks VK2AWN for the last one). It works fine over ethernet and Wifi. There’s also USB connection but, understandably, the spectrum display is much slower. This software is still under development so there will be bugs. More info, download link and updates here. Feedback and bug reports most welcome”. IDigi (Mac) In app purchases Christoph Nadig advises: “Version 3.1 of iDigi for macOS is now available, bringing some exciting improvements, especially for WSPR enthusiasts! The new WSPR decoder achieves up to 30% more successful decodes, particularly with very weak signals below −24 dB. That means more stations decoded, even under challenging reception conditions!” Nexus (Mac) Free From Seth KD9TAW: ”A full station on a Mac still tends to mean a stack of separate apps, so here’s mine. I’m Seth, KD9TAW, and I build Nexus, a free station app that runs natively on Apple Silicon (M-series, macOS 12 or later). At its core, Nexus is a DX-chasing platform. The Needed board scores everything on the air by what it adds to your log, across all bands at once, and backs each row with evidence: who near you heard it, and how long ago”. NewChirp (Mac) Free From the developer: “NewChirp brings modern radio programming to Windows, macOS, Linux, and now Android. Manage hundreds of amateur, GMRS, and commercial radio models from your computer — or read, edit, and write channels directly from your phone over Bluetooth LE or USB OTG”. Not a Rubicon Productions has done a video on the program. PSK Reporter (iPad, iPhone, Mac) $ *** From Vasco Barreiros: “PSKReporter Client 4.10 is out, and it’s ready for iPhone Duo and PSKReporter uses all of it. PSKReporter Client is free on the App Store: the map, I Heard, Heard Me, Grid view, the station list and statistics. PSKReporter Pro adds real-time updates, band activity lights and band conditions, and benchmarking against the stations in your grid. It’s a one-time purchase with no subscription”. SDR Control The following applications were updated on the dates listed and changes are detailed in “What’s new”: For Icom – Mac – 23/10 For Icom – iPad – 28/10 For Icom – iPhone – 28/10 Smart SDR for FlexRadio – Mac – 26/10 Smart SDR for FlexRadio – iPad/iPhone – 29/10 FT Control for Yaesu – Mac – 23/10 FT Control for Yaesu – iPhone/iPad – 28/10 TS Control for Kenwood – Mac – 23/10 TS Control for Kenwood – iPhone/iPad – 28/10 K4 Control for Elecraft K4 – Mac – 23/10 K4 Control for Elecraft K4 – iPhone/iPad – 28/10 SDR RX for Mac – 26/10 Ham Toolbox for Mac/iPhone/iPad – April 2026 WCS-D5200 (Mac) $$ RT Systems has released the Mac version of its Icom ID-5200 programming software: “The WCS-D5200 software helps you set up memory channel details, D-Star settings, DR Memories, and other menu item settings of the Icom ID-5200 radio”. GitHub and TestFlight Advanced FT8/FT4 DX Decoder (Mac) Free RTL-SDR reports: “Thank you to ReLLL for writing in and sharing news about the release of his “Advanced FT8/FT4 DX Decoder“, a free and open-source plugin for SDR++Brown running on Apple Silicon Macs. SDR++Brown is a popular unofficial fork of SDR++ that already includes some built-in FT8 decoding capabilities. This plugin builds on that and adds a full DX monitoring workspace directly inside the SDR software, so there is no need to pipe audio out to WSJT-X just to see who you’re hearing”. Mac TCI DX Cluster (Mac) Free From John Burns: “Hey all – plenty of new amateur radio apps appearing lately, here’s one I’ve been working on specifically for us Mac users! Mac TCI DX Cluster is a free, native macOS app with a few useful extras: RUMlogNG integration to highlight unworked stations and countries, including checks by band and mode. It reads your logbook without changing it. Up to three TCI connections for spot forwarding and tuning through software such as Thetis and Rig One. Multiple cluster feeds, flexible filters, watch-lists and a customisable interface in light and dark mode.” Nexus (Mac) Free From Seth KD9TAW: ”A full station on a Mac still tends to mean a stack of separate apps, so here’s mine. I’m Seth, KD9TAW, and I build Nexus, a free station app that runs natively on Apple Silicon (M-series, macOS 12 or later). At its core, Nexus is a DX-chasing platform. The Needed board scores everything on the air by what it adds to your log, across all bands at once, and backs each row with evidence: who near you heard it, and how long ago”. On Air (Mac) Free This is another SDR program that runs on just about everything including SDR Play and RTL-SDR. From the On Air developer: “It decodes 163 kinds of signal from an SDR: digital TV, DAB+ and FM, aircraft, ships, satellites, FT8 and a long tail of odder things. It runs on macOS, Windows and Linux and is built for receiving: it never decrypts anything”. POTA Cat (Mac, iPhone, iPad) Free From the site: “POTACAT is free ham radio software. It puts every POTA, SOTA and DX spot on one screen, tunes your rig with a click, and puts your whole station on your phone”. QSO One (iPhone, iPad) Free *** QSO One allows you to connect to digital networks, like DMR and D-Star without a radio. The app is on TestFlight for iOS and iPadOS and a Mac version is coming soon. There’s no link on the website to iOS, iPad OS or TestFlight. This is the link to TestFlight. RTL Bridge (iPad M Series only) Free This app allows you to run a RTL-SDR Dongle on an M-Series iPad. From Moonraker: “A TestFlight beta runs an RTL-SDR dongle directly on a modern iPad — no jailbreak. Here’s the back story. Previously, RTL-SDR dongles couldn’t run directly on any iOS device — the workaround was to run the dongle remotely and connect over a network via rtl_tcp. That changed in June, when Arved (callsign DK5AV, also M0KDS) got an RTL-SDR driver working directly on iPads. Now the next step, from the RTL-SDR Blog’s 20 October update: Apple has granted Arved distribution entitlement, which opens the door to submitting to the App Store — and he wants beta testers first, so he has shared a TestFlight link. The honest fine print: it currently needs an iPad with a modern M-series chip — iPhones use the A-series and won’t work. Inside the app you get a diagnostics view, a built-in FM receiver with stereo and RDS, and — the interesting bit for radio folk — an rtl_tcp server that runs on the iPad itself, so compatible rtl_tcp clients already on iOS (the article names CoronaSDR and VibeSDR) can connect. The driver now supports the V4 dongle too. It’s open source, same repo as before. Got a modern M-series iPad in the drawer? That is the hardware the beta is built for — sign up via the TestFlight link and try it”. Here’s a video from the developer. YAAM ADIF Manager (Mac) Free MacHamRadio.com reports: “Mohammad, EP2AES an active ham radio operator and software developer has recently released YAAM (Yet Another ADIF Manager)—a fast, native macOS application designed to help ham radio operators view, edit, convert, and manage their ADIF logbooks effortlessly.” 590Ctrl (Mac) Free DX Zone reports: “The 590Ctrl application provides a dedicated desktop control panel for the Kenwood TS-590SG HF transceiver, specifically designed for macOS and Linux operating systems. Developed using the Qt 6 framework and C++, this software facilitates direct control of the radio via a USB connection, offering an alternative to the transceiver’s front panel”. More on GitHub: RttyTCI from Heiko Amft WK Console from Henry Freeman Web apps Online ADIF Editor (Web) Free Dan, WD4DAN, advises he has developed an online ADIF editor. He’s done a video on the web app. OrbitNight (Web) Free RTL SDR Blog reports: “Thank you to the OrbitNight team for writing in and sharing their “OrbitNight satellite radar“, a free browser-based pass viewer for any satellite in the catalog. It can also point an antenna rotator straight from the browser over USB using Web Serial, so you don’t need to install anything”. pota.app (Web) Free POTA on 15 October 2026 announced: “Parks on the Air® (POTA) today launched its rebuilt website at pota.app. The new site replaces software that had grown hard to maintain, and it gives the volunteer developers behind Parks on the Air room to keep improving it. From late August until today, the new site ran as a public test at next.pota.app, connected to the live Parks on the Air database, while activators and hunters put it through its paces at home and in the field. The public changelog lists more than 240 changes since August alone”. Repeater-scores.app (Web) Free N2DYL on Reddit reports: “… we’ve got some new functionality to share. This is a free webapp (no signups, ads, nada) built primarily for 5100/5200/52 users and improving the nearby repeater search functionality. We add lots of useful information right to the radio display, and we help filter out repeaters that are unused and just clog up the near repeater search feature. We’ve also since branched out to improve populating your 5100/5200/52 with more repeaters and setting your memory channels. We’ve add a few new things since we last posted!” Hardware, Guides, News and Reviews Nothing new. More from VK2AWN Thank goodness the iPhone Duo is out of stock until January. I came dangerously close to buying one on impulse. 28/10/2026 I found more weird settings in my Apple devices, this time involving AirTags.28/10/2026 Small clip-on wearable Bluetooth speaker – Monster Blaster Atom – great sound, loud, light for its size and solidly built 20/10/2026 Dude, where’s my storage? Clean My #Mac knew! 18/10/2026 I’ve added #StarLink to my #POTA kit for portable #amateurradio #hamradio operations18/10/2026 About the Bulletin Items are presented alphabetically. Mention doesn’t imply endorsement or use, and no listings are paid for or in kind. Items are sourced through social media posts, websites, online news services and inbound messages. Pricing key (USD) “$”=1–9; “”=10–24;“$”=25+. “???”: Unsure of price. “***”: Owned and used by the writer. About the author Apple Amateur Radio is a not-for-profit pursuit of mine, Andrew Woodward, VK2AWN. I am a hobbyist, not working, derive no commercial gain from blogging and have no formal association with brands, people, goods and services mentioned. I just hope people find this helpful and I in turn learn something through your feedback. This bulletin is written from scratch by a human in Apple Pages with no AI except for proofreading. The first edition publishes on the second Friday of the month. The late edition publishes on the fourth Friday of the month (give or take a few days). Updates from Mac Ham Radio as at 29 October 26. Screenshot Screenshot Screenshot Screenshot ENDS https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/30/5739/ #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

I found more weird settings in my Apple devices, this time involving AirTags. This story started a few weeks ago following a comment by Adam on the MacGeekGab podcast about settings changing without your knowledge. I wrote to the show about a similar issue I had where I found the firewall on both of my Macs was turned off. For years I assumed they were on. I wrote up my experience in this post. And now I have another addition to the ‘My gear gets up to mischief when I am not looking’ story. I was poking around in the FindMy app recently as I wanted to change the name and Emoji for an AirTag. When in settings for the AirTag, I was looking at the “Notify Me” section and the sub-heading “When Left Behind”. I was surprised to see “Except at 10 locations”. Ten? Huh? I clicked on the arrow to find myriad locations. One was my home, the other nine were places ranging from up the street from home while others were many thousands of kilometres away. They were places I had visited at some point and in some cases not for several years. No wonder I wasn’t getting as many “left behind” alerts as I used to. I have no idea what setting is checked that allowed these locations to be added. And no, I don’t play Croquet but I do walk by the club. I have nine AirTags, four UGreen tags (fobs and cards) and a Satechi glasses case. I had to go through each one, one by one, and remove the places I didn’t want listed. We’re talking over 120 individual swipes. Anyway, that’s now been cleaned up but I created a reminder to check them every three months. While poking around, I also found some of the non-Apple devices had a firmware update available. It appears the Apple AirTags update automatically but third-party ones don’t. Again, it’s worth checking. 28 October 2026 https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/28/i-found-more-weird-settings-in-my-apple-devices-this-time-involving-airtags/ #appledevices #settings #appleairtags #leftbehind #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

Thank goodness the iPhone Duo is out of stock until January. I came dangerously close to buying one on impulse. I went to the Apple Store in Brisbane today to take a look at the iPhone Duo. I had read the reviews and watched the videos but was keen to see it for myself. I didn’t go in with the intention of buying one. First, it’s insanely expensive – AUD3.5k (USD2.46k). Second, my iPhone 17 base model is perfectly good and only a year old. Third, I have an M4 iPad Pro with keyboard and pencil. But after 15 minutes of playing around the conversation with he Apple retail assistant went like this: Me: When is it available? Apple staffer: January. Me: Thanks, you just prevented the mother of all impulse buys. On the stand in store In the palm The iPhone Duo really is impressive, like really impressive. The screen quality and brightness are outstanding, it feels solid, it sits in the palm of your hand (when open and closed), it’s not too heavy, the sound quality is more than good and the ‘two column’ app layout when open is cool. The way the screens evolve or transition is classy. But what really struck me upon first sighting was that if you didn’t know it was a folding device, at first glance, you’d think it was a mini iPad Mini. There’s no noticeable crease or indent on the inside folding screen. That’s amazing. I really liked the screen size when folded out. I think it is the perfect size for those who commute on trains, trams, buses and ferries. The screen felt really personal when I was watching a video. There’s a quirk with the sound. The two speakers, from what I could gather are on the bottom of the bottom, because they have to be (otherwise if the speaker was on the far left when open, when folded the two speakers would be on top of each other). So, when folded out, the left and right separation isn’t as pronounced as it is on an iPad. It’s not a big deal but it is worth noting. And most people would use headphones, anyway. I didn’t check out the cases but for the device with this much glass and at the price it is, you’d want solid protection on it together with Apple Care Plus Theft and Loss. I had a light play with the camera but it was hard to make judgements as the light in the Apple Store was now. But for 99 per cent of people, it will be just fine. AirPods Pro 3 AirPods Pro 3 17 v Duo Will I get one “one day”, most likely. Could it replace my iPad (which I am writing on now)? Possibly. My MacBook Pro? No. It will be fascinating to see how this device iterates in the years ahead. Most quality folding phones are in the ‘insane’ price bracket at present. Apple is not alone. The price will mitigate proliferation but I think the transition will be similar to what we saw from ‘candy bar’ phones and Blackberries to iPhones starting 20 years ago. I’d say within seven years or so, the majority of iPhones used will be foldable. And then that will spill over to iPads. The future is foldable. 28 October 2026 https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/28/thank-goodness-the-iphone-duo-is-out-of-stock-until-january-i-came-dangerously-close-to-buying-one-on-impulse/ #iphoneduo #apple #january #pro #store #ipad #airpodspro #first #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

Small clip-on wearable Bluetooth speaker – Monster Blaster Atom – great sound, loud, light for its size and solidly built This is cool. It’s called the Blaster Atom by Monster who have been around for decades. I picked it up for USD40 (AUD70). It’s a small Bluetooth speaker; it’s quite loud, the sound quality is fine, it’s light enough and feels solid. It just works. Why did I get it? I walk in the bush and on the beach a lot, but I don’t always want headphones in. I’d like to listen to both nature and things of interest (books, podcasts, music and live radio). The Monster Blaster Atom magnetically clips onto my hat, shirt/jacket, belt or backpack straps. It can also be clipped onto a carabiner clip. If you get two, you can form a stereo pair! And it has buttons for play/ pause and you can use it as a speakerphone! It’s an amazing little piece of kit. It weighs 81 grams and measures 48 mm x 65 mm x 32 mm. I’ve included a shot of the USB-A to USB-C cable to illustrate the size. I’ve also done a video in the quiet at home and on a noisy beach. And yes that’s beach sand on it. In Australia, I got it through Aditek, the Monster distributor. It’s available globally through a variety of distributors. It comes in Black, Red and White. 20 October 2026 https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/20/small-clip-on-wearable-bluetooth-speaker-monster-blaster-atom-great-sound-loud-light-for-its-size-and-solidly-built/ #blasteratom #monsterblaster #bluetoothspeaker #loud #small #sound #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

I’ve added #StarLink to my #POTA kit for portable #amateurradio #hamradio operations What follows may read or sound counter intuitive but hear me out. I got a StarLink Mini to take with me for POTA activations. Taking a small satellite dish for a portable amateur radio deployment to many may ‘defeat the purpose’. But no, for me, it makes the experience much more rewarding. When I go bush or beach for POTA, I like to spot on pota dot app and Parks and Peaks. I also like to look up the call signs of incoming operators via Ham2K PoLo. And I like to chase Park to Park, so seeing who’s out there is critical for me. I’m in Australia and use Optus for my mobile service on iPhone 17. I also have a back-up ESIM on the Telstra network via Everyday Mobile (MVNO). I found these worked in 60 percent of locations. But in the more remote, interesting and unactivated parks, I found no coverage. There were also safety issues as I found out the hard way a few weeks ago. I decided to get a StarLink Mini for the car. I got the unit second hand on MarketPlace for USD150 (AUD220). The service (Roam) each month is usd50 (AUD85) for 100 GB of data. There is an unlimited plan for a higher price. It came with a mains power adapter and pole bracket. I picked up a five metre long USB-C to barrel power cable with waterproofing from Jaycar and a case for the kit from Amazon. It required 100 watts of power and this is supplied by a UGreen 130 watts adapter, connected to my 13.8 volt power supply. It just works, and well. The set-up is relatively simple and the speeds are good. The only caveat is that you need a good view of the southern sky without trees and mountains in the way. I can now POTA from just about anywhere. I’m happy (and safe). https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/18/ive-added-starlink-to-my-pota-kit-for-portable-amateurradio-hamradio-operations/ #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

Dude, where’s my storage? Clean My #Mac knew! I recently got an M4 Mac Mini and ran migration assistant to move everything from the M2 Mini being replaced. In getting a new machine I has downsized from 512 GB to 256 GB SSD. A month into the new machine, via iStat Menus, I received a message telling my hard drive was nearly full. This took me by surprise. I ran the M2 with about 180 gb of data on it and I expected the new M4 would be the same. But no, the data on the SSD had grown past 200 GB. I ran Clean My Mac and went beyond the usual scan that finds 4gb of data. I used a feature called Space Lens which examines the SSD and looks for large files and folders. I was surprised at what it found. I’d group its findings into three buckets: Temp files. For example, inside in Text Edit, there was an 8 GB TMP folder and file. Universal binaries. In plain English, these are files in apps that enable them to work on the old Intel chip Macs. The files aren’t needed to run on the M-Series Apple silicon chips. AI application temp files. On my M5 MacBook Pro, I found Claude had some files sitting at 17 GB. Before deleting files, I checked with Gemini on what was safe to remove and the guidance it provided was pretty solid. On my two Macs, I reclaimed about 30 to 40 GB of storage on each and have set up a quarterly reminder to run Space Lens to keep an eye on folders. 18 October 2026 https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/18/dude-wheres-my-storage-clean-my-mac-knew/ #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

Apple Amateur Radio Bulletin – First Edition for 16 October 2026 #hamradio #amateurradio Web page – Posts – Facebook – X – BlueSky – Instagram – Reddit – Linktree Substack – RSS – PDF – Software list – YouTube Playlist – Email Welcome to the first bulletin for October 2026. I am excited see JTTY come to life in recent weeks and getting it working on my Macs was easy (see below). If you have any tips, news, and good ideas for the bulletin, please contact me, Andrew VK2AWN. You can also download this bulletin as a PDF. JTTY on WSJT-X 3.2 RC1 Applications APRS Connect (iPhone, iPad) In app purchases Amateur Radio Weekly reports: “APRS Connect, the messaging-first APRS client that launched on Android in August, is now on the App Store for iPhone (iOS 16.4 or later). It is free to install and use over APRS-IS. Connecting a radio and several advanced features are part of APRS Connect Pro, a subscription with a 7-day free trial”. AutoFilter (Mac) In-app purchases AutoFilter from Georg Isenbürger is now at version 5.1.1. From the site: “AutoFilter acts as an inline filter between up to 3 DX clusters, WSJT-X, and your logging app (e.g. RUMlogNG). No cluster commands required, completely cluster-agnostic. Includes FT8/FT4 auto-QSO, worked grids tracking and logbook sync”. Club Log (iPhone, iPad and Mac) In app purchases An announcement by DX-World and Club Log: “DX-World is the first place to look for information about upcoming DXpeditions, while the new Club Log mobile app gives DXers visibility of what’s on the air now. With DX-World news integrated directly into the calendar tool of the app, it’s possible to see and study both in one place, making it easy to prepare for upcoming DX and get it in the log. Club Log v2.2.0 is now available in the Google Play Store and Apple App Store”. Deep CW (iPhone, iPad, Mac) Free From DX Zone: “Operating in challenging RF environments, DeepCW provides real-time Morse code decoding capabilities through a neural network model. The software excels at robustly interpreting weak signals, mitigating the effects of QSB, and performing effectively in noisy conditions, a common issue for CW operators. It also supports multi-channel decoding, allowing for the simultaneous interpretation of multiple CW signals present in the audio stream”. Ham Clock Launcher (Mac) Free Hubert Hickman reports: “HamClock Launcher for the Mac V4.32 has been released – pick up the latest builds (link). Full release notes are here. Thanks to all those on the ohb team that make this possible !”. IDigi (Mac) In-app purchases Christoph Nadig, HB9ZHK has released version 3.05 of iDigi. He advises: “Version 3.0 is the biggest iDigi update so far, with quite a few additions and improvements: • MFSK support, including reception of MFSK images • Olivia support • QPSK31, QPSK63 and QPSK125 • Major FT8/FT4 decoder improvements, including multi-pass decoding, deep decoding and a-priori decoding • Multi-threaded FT8/FT4 decoding for substantially better performance on modern Macs • A significantly improved CW decoder, delivering up to 50% better decoding results in my tests • Numerous smaller improvements and fixes throughout the application”. Ham Satting (iPhone, iPad, Mac) ???? Yousuf Al Balushi A41UX via DX Zone reports: “(the app) Demonstrates the capabilities of Ham Satting, a multi-platform application developed by A41UX for amateur radio satellite tracking. The resource details features such as real-time visualization of over 100 amateur satellites, precise pass predictions, and integrated QSO logging with auto-fill for satellite-specific frequencies and modes.” HT Commander (iPhone, iPad, CarPlay, Mac) Free “HTCommander release 1.82 for iOS now has Apple CarPlay! Check it out with KC1MUR as he takes a first look at making your VGC and VGC-clone mobiles really mobile!”. See the video via Alliance Amateur. JTTY Chat (Mac) Free *** Australian developer Peter Marks VK3TPM has developed an app for specifically for Mac for JTTY. JTTYChat is free and can be download from Peter’s site. Peter quickly responds to suggestions and bugs. I have used both WSJT-X 3.2 RC1 and JTTYChat and have detailed my experience in this post. Orbit Deck (Mac) Free Paul Stoetzer in June posted on Facebook: “Announcing OrbitDeck. OrbitDeck is a free, open-source desktop satellite tracker for amateur radio operators — runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It does live tracking, pass prediction, Doppler-corrected uplink/downlink frequencies, link budgets, mutual-visibility windows, and more. It works offline out of the box with a bundled catalog, and one click pulls the live AMSAT catalog for on-the-air-accurate pass times. The feature I’m most excited to share with this group: a full OSCARLOCATOR. There’s an interactive on-screen version, plus a one-click printable PDF set so you can build a real, physical OSCARLOCATOR with a printer, some card, and transparency film. It works for any QTH, northern or southern hemisphere, and any satellite — a great hands-on way to teach how a satellite pass actually works. Perfect for classrooms, club nights, and outreach. Radio Mail 2.0 (iPhone, iPad, Mac) In app purchases Georges, WH6AZ advises: “After many months of development, testing, and feedback from the TestFlight community, RadioMail 2.0 is available on the App Store. This isn’t RadioMail 1.x with a fresh coat of paint. RadioMail 2.0 is a completely new application, built from the ground up around everything I’ve learned over the past few years. The goal remains the same: build the best Winlink app for portable operating on iPhone and iPad (and even Mac)” Radio Slience SDR (iPhone, iPad) Free Scott Chen advises: “Radio Silence, (is) a native iOS app for listening to the HF bands through KiwiSDR receivers. It decodes CW, RTTY, and FT8 on-device, printing them as readable text in real time. There is also a live spectrum waterfall from the node’s own FFT, background and lock-screen listening with a sleep timer, a Home Screen widget and Siri Shortcuts, and a logbook where captures are saved with frequency, mode, node, signal strength, and UTC timestamp, and can be exported as reception report cards. RTL-SDR.com covered it recently, and the TestFlight beta is open and free if you would like to try it”. VibeSDR (Watch) $ From the developer: “A full SDR ecosystem, not just an app: the VibeSDR receiver, the VibeServer that feeds it, and VibeSDR Jr on your wrist, all running the same DSP and the same dial. Not a desktop app squashed down to fit a phone: every screen gets a layout designed and optimised for it, from a watch face to a monitor. Tune the shared networks it speaks, UberSDR, OpenWebRX, KiwiSDR, FM-DX, SpyServer and rtl_tcp, or plug a dongle in and tune your own. Or host your own VibeServer and share it with everyone.” World Clock Widget (iPhone, iPad, Mac, CarPlay) *** This is an app and widget I use on all of my devices to have UTC always visible. WSJT-X V3.2 RC1 (Mac) Free Newsline reports: “WSJT-X 3.2 Brings New JTTY Mode for RTTY Contesters. A release candidate of WSJT-X 3.2 introduces JTTY, a new keyboard-to-keyboard digital mode built to give RTTY contesters the familiar feel of traditional RTTY with better weak-signal performance. The mode uses a four-tone GFSK waveform in about 127 Hz of bandwidth and can reach contest speeds around 60 words per minute, and it already integrates with N1MM Logger+”. ZeusSDR (Mac, Web) ??? ZeusSDR has been updated to 2.0.43 with the developer posting on 1 October 2026: “ZeusSDR engine update 2.0.43 is pushing this hour. Restart Zeus Link and it installs on launch, nothing to download. The big one: Winlink now has a built-in ARDOP modem. Pick ARDOP in the Winlink window and Zeus runs the modem itself. It switches to DIGU on the dial you chose, keys the radio, and puts your mode and dial back when the session ends. No separate ARDOP program to install”. Web apps D-Star Guru “The world’s most active amateur-radio reflectors, updated automatically.” Leo.space “Leo.space publishes source-aware space coverage and practical tracking utilities for launch watchers, satellite operators, and field users.” Repeater Scoring APP & CSV Generator From the site: “This web app began as a project to improve the ICOM Near Repeater Search functionality, which had a lot of potential but didn’t work well with the data ICOM made available. Since then, repeater-scores has expanded even further to be able to help nearly any amateur radio operator in the USA or Canada better program their radio with likely utilised repeaters. How it works: This web app utilises RepeaterBook to derive a score for repeaters based common indications of utilisation. It’s a score though, NOT a grade, and it’s definitely not a competition. Our score merely indicates our best estimate if a repeater is more likely to be busy.” RBN S-Meter From Gerry Hull: “The Reverse Beacon Network is a global array of software-defined radio receivers called “skimmers” that continuously scan the HF bands and report every CW, RTTY, and FT8 signal they hear. Unlike a traditional spotting network driven by human operators, the RBN runs 24/7 and produces thousands of automated spots per hour. The RBN S-Meter is now a free web app that runs on any device. Visit it at https://rbsm.rm.gl.” satellites.ham-amplifiers.com Satellite Ham Amplifiers Dot Com (write up on Reddit) is another addition to the satellite tracking websites and apps genre. I am a user of this site. The best feature is that it can give you a calendar subscription (that populates automatically) for passes of selected satellites at your QTH. Here’s a link to the calendar subscription for the ISS based on my location (QF69kn). You can copy this link and change the grid-square at the end to get the subscription for your location for the ISS. Hardware, Guides, News and Reviews RT Systems Icom ID-5200A/E programming software for Mac RT Systems has released programming Software for the Icom ID-5200A/E for Windows. In response to my enquiry by email, they advised the Mac version of the software will be released before the end of October. “RT Systems and RepeaterBook have teamed up to give you a route search option for RepeaterBook Plus Subscribers,” according to RT Systems. See how it’s works in this video on YouTube. RumLog developer, Thomas Lindner, advises: “RUMlogNG contest operation using the internal RTTY modem on a cluttered screen: ESM S&P and ESM Running. SDR Angel “An Analog Touch of Class for SDRAngel: Two New Open-Source Tools for SWLs and SDR Enthusiasts,” Patrizio (IN3032SWL) on SWLing Post. Other things under development Heiko Amft and rttyTCI Henry Freeman and WK Console John Burns and Mac 125 Naoto Suzuki JP1RXQ and Toy Meter Chris Müller HB9HJI and Ham Tools Hidehito Shiba And MacHamLog Julian Haag And SDRminusminus Scott Kuma and MenuMaiden (Reddit Post) (***) More from VK2AWN I just had my first go on #JTTY using #wsjt-x and it worked right out of the box! #amateurradio #hamradio #freedv #FT8 #dstar 10/10/2026 The bands are quiet today (Sun. 5 Oct. 26) but there’s always something out there – a new DXCC… Wallis and Futuna #ft8 #hamradio #amateurradio 05/10/2026 A day up the mountain – AU-2501 Baalijin Nature Park. #POTA #amateurradio #hamradio 03/10/2026 Don’t get caught – check if your Mac firewall settings are on. 29/09/2026 All posts: Amateur Radio feed and Apple and tech feed About the Bulletin Items are presented alphabetically. Mention doesn’t imply endorsement or use, and no listings are paid for or in kind. Items are sourced through social media posts, websites, online news services and inbound messages. Pricing key (USD) “$”=1–9; “$”=10–24; “$$”=25+. “???”: Unsure of price. “***”: Owned and used by the writer. About the author Apple Amateur Radio is a not-for-profit pursuit of mine, Andrew Woodward, VK2AWN. I am a hobbyist, not working, derive no commercial gain from blogging and have no formal association with brands, people, goods and services mentioned. I just hope people find this helpful and I in turn learn something through your feedback. This bulletin is written from scratch by a human in Apple Pages with no AI except for proofreading. The first edition publishes on the second Friday of the month. The late edition publishes on the fourth Friday of the month (give or take a few days). Updates from Mac Ham Radio as at 15 October 26. ENDS https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/16/apple-amateur-radio-bulletin-first-edition-for-16-october-2026-hamradio-amateurradio/ #rss #feeds #linksharing #qwibbit

I just had my first go on #JTTY using #wsjt-x and it worked right out of the box! #amateurradio #hamradio #freedv #FT8 #dstar I am very interested in digital HF amateur radio. I think it’s the future in an urban high-noise environment. I have had a play with FreeDV and I am very impressed. It’s a digital voice mode for amateur radio. It works really well, is crystal clear and easy to set-up. There’s the FreeDV official client and a third party Mac version (which I use). I believe it is the future of amateur radio on HF and the way we will “all” communicate one day by voice. I think D-Star from Icom and used also by Kenwood is a great technology but it’s limited by adoption and a lack of repeaters (although hotspots are pretty good). There are many digital data modes for amateur radio with FT8 being the most popular. I have had a play with JS8 Call but never really worked it out although I did get it going. It was slow and confusing to me. I have seen some publicity lately for JTTY using the release Candidate of WSJT-X 3.2. I knew nothing about it and decided to give it a go on my M4 Mac mini running 27.0.1. My process was: Downloaded it Hooked up my Icom IC-7300 Mk2 via USB Put the mode on JTTY Set the baud to 19,200 (same in app and on radio) Put the frequency on 7090 kHz USB-Data (Upper Side Band-Data)( spelt out as to avoid confusion) I put out a few test messages and played with input and output volumes to keep ALC where it should be. Voilà – VK2BLQ came back to me. Sending and receiving is just like just Messages or WhatsApp on your phone. It’s not like FT8 that ticks over every 15 seconds. It’s instant. And you can say anything. It’s not limited to the six template messages of FT8. There are a few buttons for template messages you can modify. I have them for CQ, QTH, QRZ and QST. The questions I have are: Can you receive or send at the same time? Can you direct message or is the frequency a party line? Anyway, I look forward to playing with this and learning more. Please share your experience with me. 73’s Andrew, VK2AWN 10 October 2026 https://andrewwoodward.net/2026/10/10/i-just-had-my-first-go-on-jtty-using-wsjt-x-and-it-worked-right-out-of-the-box-amateurradio-hamradio-freedv-ft8-dstar/